Will Di Canio's past affect Sunderland's future?

MOST footballers' autobiographies are anodyne, sanitised affairs. New Sunderland manager Paolo Di Canio is most assuredly not most footballers.

In "Paolo Di Canio: The Autobiography", which was ghost-written by Italian journalist Gabriele Marcotti and published in 2000, Di Canio talks with remarkable candour about many of the moments that have made him one of the most polarising figures in European football.

There's the playing career in Italy that took him to AC Milan and Napoli as well as his beloved Lazio. There's the time spent in England, which included the infamous moment when he pushed over referee Paul Alcock in a fit of fury. There's even a recipe for the perfect tiramisu.

Then, of course, there's the politics. And while there are footballing reasons to debate whether or not Di Canio is the right man to replace Martin O'Neill, the first 24 hours of his reign have witnessed a fevered discussion about whether a self-confessed "fascist" should be leading a football club with proud historical links to its predominantly working-class community.

Di Canio has sought to soften some of his more strident political views in recent years, but the 44-year-old Italian has never attempted to hide his youth as a right-wing ultra or his ideological leaning towards an outlook many would find abhorrent.

The question Sunderland fans will wrestle with as he attempts to keep their club in the Premier League is, 'Should any of that matter when it comes to managing their team?'

WHEN discussing Di Canio's politics, a degree of context is required. Born and raised in Quarticciolo, a working-class area of Rome, the future Serie A champion was hardly your typical future professional.

He was overweight, knock-kneed and required specialist orthopaedic shoes. He shared a bed with his brother, Antonio, and in one particularly memorable part of his autobiography, he admits he would wet the bed rather than clamber out of the room alone.

Something of an outsider, he noted the preponderance of Roma fans in his part of the city and immediately felt compelled to join Lazio's 'Irriducibili', the hardline supporters' group that embraced hooliganism and hardline political views.

Embraced as part of a wider community, probably for the first time, he threw himself down the path of the Irriducibili, joining in their chants, supporting their activisim and travelling to away matches where violence almost inevitably occurred.

In his autobiography, he speaks of witnessing the stabbing of a Bergamo police chief, but not doing anything about it. He has subsequently expressed remorse for some of his actions during this period of his life.

Even when he was signed as a member of Lazio's youth team, he continued to champion the Irriducibili's cause. Hence, he would argue, the explosive strong-arm salute he claims was always only ever intended as a symbol of solidarity to his supporters, the willingness to champion Italy's historical brand of fascism and the expressions of admiration for Italian fascist leader Benito Mussolini, whose dictatorial actions during his two decades in power are now widely reviled.

Di Canio has a tattoo on his shoulder which reads "DVX" - the Latin expression for "Duce", which was the term Mussolini used to represent his leadership.

In the most controversial passage of his book, the Sunderland boss attempted to rationalise his respect for Mussolini. "I am fascinated by Mussolini," he wrote. "I think he was a deeply misunderstood individual."He deceived people. His actions were often vile. But all this was motivated by a higher purpose. He was basically a very principled individual. Yet he turned against his sense of right and wrong. He compromised his ethics."

Are these the words, as some would claim, of an ideologically-driven fascist, or merely the comments of someone who is eager to fit in with a section of society he regards as his home environment?

In an enlightening discussion penned in December 2011, Independent journalist Robert Chalmers spoke to some of those closest to Di Canio and concluded the latter.

An anonymous source from Di Canio's youth was quoted as saying: "Paolo is not, and has never been, a bad person, or an ideological fascist. Certain things he has said and done - like the salute with the Lazio fans - have to do with his psychological history, particularly his former compulsive tendencies and pronounced mood swings."

It should also be noted that while fascist tendencies imply support for authoritarianism, nationalism and ethnocentricism, there is a difference between fascism and racism or facism and neo-Nazism.

Di Canio has shied away from revisiting his past in recent years, although he will no doubt be asked to shed some light on the issues it raises when he attends his first press briefing as Sunderland manager, even if a club statement released yesterday afternoon attempted to draw a line under the matter.

For now, though, his infamous statement to the Italian media in 2005 - "I am a fascist, not a racist" - appears to be the comment that has come to define him.

THE key question to follow all of that, is 'Does it matter?' David Miliband clearly thought so, tending his resignation from his role as Sunderland vice-chairman within minutes of Di Canio's appointment. The GMB union also took offence to the Italian's views, withdrawing their sponsorship of Swindon Town after Di Canio was installed into his first English managerial position at the County Ground.

Miliband's departure might not have too many practical implications, but it is symbolically important as it signifies the unease of a high-profile figure who had previously spoken of a desire to remain involved with the Black Cats despite his impending move to the United States.

Leading anti-racism groups voiced their concern yesterday, and given the giant strides that have been made to combat racism in North-East football grounds in the last three decades, it would be wrong to give any suggestion that intolerance is suddenly acceptable.

By coincidence, the far-right English Defence League held a march in Sunderland on Saturday. It would be extremely alarming if the actions of the city's football club were in any way to provide succour to such a group.

The counter-argument, which has been voiced by a number of supporters on social media, is that Di Canio's politics have nothing to do with football.

Whether you find his views distasteful or not, is it not wrong to argue against his right to harbour them? If he was to use the manager's seat at the Stadium of Light as a platform to convey them to others, that would be a different story. But since moving into management, there has been no sign of that happening.

Di Canio, who vehemently denies any accusations of racism, has worked with organisations such as Show Racism The Red Card and while he courted controversy on a number of occasions at Swindon, there was no political angle to the flash points that occurred. Consequently, to plenty of Sunderland supporters, his results will be all that matter.

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